The Exhibitionist and the Cosplay Queen
by x.Diamond-Tears.x
Summary: I'm taking on the 100 theme challenge, this story is going to be a series of one shots featuring the couple Gray/Lucy! Hope you enjoy it!
1. Introduction

**Heya guys I'm taking up the 100 themes challenge and my main focus will be the couple Gray/Lucy! This story is going to include a series of oneshots, some will be long and some will be short (it all depends on my imagination and creativity or lack of it...)**

**Anyway I hope you enjoy this collection of one shots I must say I'm really excited about this challenge, it's going to be fun!**

**Disclaimer: I wish I owned Fairy Tail... but I don't and I never will.**

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_Theme: Introduction_

If there was one thing Lucy had learnt when she was a child was when introducing yourself always be presentable as first impressions always count. So when Natsu agreed to take her to Fairy Tail she ensured that she was a vision of perfection, she didn't want her future guild members to think poorly of her, she especially wanted to make a good impression on Mirajane, her idol.

As soon as they entered the guild Natsu charged head on kicking some poor defenceless guild member, claiming he had given him false information. Despite the new fight breaking out Lucy just stood in awe with her suitcase "Whoa... I really came to Fairy Tail" she breathed out, eyes sparkling in admiration, the guild she had dreamt of all this time, she would finally become a member.

"Did you say Natsu's back? Hey lets settle our fight from the other time, punk!" Lucy turned to see it was a shirtless dark haired mage that yelled out that challenge. She took a step back startled by his sudden appearance, suddenly another mage this time a woman drinking huge gallons of alcohol pointed out his unclothed state, Lucy's jaw could only hang loose when the shirtless mage appeared shocked '_Is this guy really that clueless?' _she thought to herself.

Soon Natsu and the mysterious mage started battling it out, punches were thrown and magic clashed, if things couldn't get worse another soon joined the ruckus, a tall man with white hair who seemed to be harping on about manliness, however, he was out of the fight as soon as he joined due to being punched out by Natsu and the other guy.

"Hmm it's so noisy over here" a gentle voice called out, Lucy turned and there she was face to face with Loki, she couldn't believe it a small blush crept her cheeks, this was the mage that was ranked top of "mage you would want as a boyfriend" and she wasn't surprised, he was incredibly handsome, his golden orange locks cut and spiked in a stylish way, his lean yet muscular frame could not been see through his thick green coat, but Lucy had seen model cover spreads and she knew that this guy was definately her type, he seemed so chivalrous, mature and-

"I'll go join their fight" he cried out gleefully as many girls who clung to him cooed and wished him luck. '_Ok scrap the mature thing, that's just corrupte__d my image of him' _Lucy thought to herself as she slumped to a depressive state, was everyone at this guild crazy? It wasn't until Mirajane knelt down beside her that she felt she could calm down once again, she was just as beautiful as she was in the magazine spreads, the gentle smile just seemed to soothe her nerves, '_she seems so out of place compared to the other people in this guild_' Lucy thought to herself.

"Sh-shouldn't you stop them" Lucy stuttered pointing warily to the huge brawl in the middle of the guild, Mirajane just laughed joyfully which confused Lucy even more.

"This happens all the time, you don't have to worry about it!" she replied with a bright smile as she observed the fighting, tables and chairs now broken to pieces and legs and arms thrashed about, a large bottle soon came flying knocking Mirajane over on the head and causing her to lie on the ground.

"Mirajane-san!" Lucy screamed, a terrified expression crossing her face, as she started to panic Mirajane sat up still smiling her traditional warm smile however, this time blood trickled down her forehead, completely oblivious to the harmful injury. '_She's just as mad as the rest of them!_' Lucy wailed to herself as she watched her idol just laugh at the chaos that surrounded them.

Due to Lucy's head buzzing with panic over the fight,what happened next came as a truly horrific surprise, the half naked mage that she witnessed earlier came crashing into a table nearby, letting out a shrieked she immediately became concerned over her own safety and if she would soon be dragged into this battle of the lunatics.

"Hah!" Natsu let out a laugh as in his hand was a pair of stripy boxers, Lucy glanced over to the mage who was getting up in front of her, her face turned a deep crimson as two and two began to fit together.

"AH! My underwear, don't face this way!"

Naturally Lucy looked up and there stood the now naked mage giving her a front seat view of his 'assets.' Letting out a screeched she covered her eyes, but she could not forget what she just saw, the image of his naked body burned into her mind's eye, blushing bright red she felt her humiliation rise up. If things couldn't get any worse, he was pretty good looking.

She finally opened her eyes to see the naked mage lending his hand to her, '_oh good maybe he's going to apologise' _Lucy thought as a smile threatened to creep up.

"Lady, if you don't mind lend me your underwear" he asked curtly.

For a split second Lucy mind went into malfunction, the smile that was slowly rising suddenly dissappeared her face had got hotter and her eyes widened, completely surprised by what he had just asked "No way I'd do that!" and with that she punch the pervert in the face.

The rest of the day was a blur. Lucy had concluded that the guild was mad and that everyone who was a member was mad too, despite just joining the guild she was certain that she was the only sane person there. Her mind went back to the dark haired boy who she had met those brief few seconds, for some reason what happened between them replayed in her mind over and over again, her face growing hot whenever she recounted his sudden... exposure. She ram her face into her hands, there was no way she was a pervert, this crazy nudist was the pervert for flashing in front of her, and he was an idiot too for not even realising he was naked.

Lucy just sighed and twiddled with a strand of hair, ok so that guy did not make the best first impression on her, and the guild seemed to be a little crazy, but deep down she knew she would warm up to it. Lucy smiled softly to herself as her thoughts went back to the dark haired mage '_and who knows maybe my impression of the nudist will change if I get to know him too!_'

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**So what do you guys think? I have to say I went for the obvious route with this one and wrote about how Gray and Lucy met but giving it a Graylu twist at the end ;D**

**Sorry this one shot was relatively short, I promise I'll write some long ones in the future! If you want to have a look at the themes I have planned out they're written on my profile, just saying though I won't be doing it in order :P  
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Still 1 down only 99 more left to go...**

**Please review! **


	2. Fork in the Road

**Heya guys, just want to say thank you for all the positive feedback I got from both this story and 'Kisses under the Mistletoe' may I say reading your reviews really make me smile :)**

**It's kinda funny cause when I uploaded the first oneshot to this story I edited it before uploading however when it uploaded the unedited version popped up, it was a tad annoying but alas I've finally been able to re-edit the first oneshot and replace it, you don't need to re-read it though it's still the same only with slightly better grammar and a few sentences placed here and there. ****Anyways I hope you enjoy this one shot I must say I had tonnes of fun writing this! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail heck I don't even own a fairy Tail book... I should really sort that out...  
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_Theme: Fork in the road_

The morning sun's rays seeped through the curtains into Lucy's room, conveniently blinding the Stella spirit mage as it shone into her eyes. Clamping her eyes closer together Lucy muttered unintelligently about how the sun was stupid, she then let out a brief sigh and snuggled closer to the ice mage who lay in bed next to her. He too had his arms draped over her holding her close to his exposed body, legs coiled around tangled sheets this seemed to be one of those rare moments when the couple could share the peace and quiet of the early morning with each other.

Unfortunately for this couple, mornings for them were never quiet or peaceful, for you see this couple had certain friends who liked to barge in and make themselves at home. As if on cue Natsu barged in with Happy flying past making his way towards the bed, Natsu then stopped noticed the couple was still asleep and looked at Happy trying to stifle a laugh, as able to read his mind Happy himself began to giggle as he eyed Natsu slowly approaching the bed.

Natsu leant into Lucy's ear still trying his hardest not to laugh and softly whispered "Naughty, naughty Lucy's done the dirty." Lucy's eyes shot opened as her head snapped round, seeing Natsu millimetres apart pulling some sort of horrifying face, Lucy did only the most natural thing to do in these circumstances, scream.

Natsu and Happy doubled over in laughter as Lucy sprang up screaming, they continued to laugh harder clutching their stomachs when Lucy then realised her nudity and tried covering herself with the duvet, only she pulled it so hard she ended up flipping Gray like a pancake causing him to fall on the hard floor face down. Cursing under his breath Gray stood up and turned to face Natsu, if looks could kill Natsu would be on the floor experiencing a slow and painful death.

Natsu looked up at Gray and scowled in disgust "Put the twig away stupid, no one wants to see that!"

"Except Lucy!" Happy chimed in as he continued to laugh, Natsu hearing Happy's comment nodded and burst out laughing. Gray noticing he was fully exposed, yelped in shock and ran to the other side of the room looking for his boxers, he then straightened up turned his head ever so slowly and glared at Natsu.

"What do you mean by... twig?" he asked slowly, of course realising what Natsu had said about his 'little friend' had been a stab at his pride and ego, Lucy now recovering from her embarrassment only sighed '_for goodness sake they can't be fighting about this, in my room of all places?_'

Natsu puffed out his chest and pointed at Gray, his head tilted back so he could look down on him "Yeah you heard me, no wonder you strip all the time you're probably compensating for your tiny-"

Before Natsu could even finish his sentence he received a kick in the face from Lucy who was wrapping herself with the duvet. She stormed over to Natsu and picked him up from the scruff of his scarf and shook him violently. Happy flew over to Gray and quivered behind him muttering how Lucy was being scary like Erza. Gray just observed what Lucy was doing to Natsu, it was times like this when his girlfriend truly terrified him however, as it was Natsu he couldn't help but smirk at his rival's expense.

"-And finally don't you ever come into my room while I'm asleep!" Lucy yelled as she punched Natsu over the head for the last time, huffing with annoyance Lucy grabbed her clothes storming out towards the bathroom.

Gray and Happy slowly approached Natsu who was now fashioning a dozen of lumps and bruises, both of them laughed at how ridiculous the salamander looked.

"Natsu got beaten up by Lucy" Happy snickered; Natsu threw a lazy glare at his best friend and rival and crossed his arms, muttering something inaudible. Gray sighed and sat down besides Natsu, the two of them sat in a comfortable silence, and if anyone from the guild had seen this they would have thought they were dreaming or Erza had threatened their lives. Still it was moments like this that made you remember that deep down, despite the hurling insults and the constant fighting the two of them were actually friends.

It was Natsu that broke the silence "So two years, huh?" he muttered.

Gray nodded "Yeah, can't believe it myself, never thought I'd be able to handle that much of a commitment."

Natsu laughed "More like you couldn't find a girl who could handle your stripping habits" Happy laughed at Natsu's comment and Gray himself let out a low chuckle, Natsu looked up at Gray a hardness in his stare as his face donned a serious expression "So when are you going to do it?"

Gray immediately understanding sighed and rested his head on the wall behind him, he took in a deep breath and looked at the floor "Today, today is going to be the day." Natsu only nodded, the silence took over the room once again.

"You know" Natsu started, Gray turned his head to face him, he could see Natsu clenching and unclenching his fists as his teeth gritted against one another "If you ever hurt her, I will make you wish you were dead." Gray sat up straighter and was about to protest but he caught sight of Natsu's deathly glare and knew he was serious.

Taking in a deep breath Gray returned Natsu glare "I promise you I would never-"

"What's going on in here then?"

The two boys and cat snapped their heads to the bathroom door only to see Lucy fully dressed, drying her hair with a towel. Gray and Natsu froze in place, both of them knew Lucy should not know what they had been talking about, however, Lucy was clever if they didn't come up with anything soon she would catch on.

"Fish" everyone turned to Happy who flew to Lucy and sat on her head "we were just talking about fish!" the blue cat smiled, Lucy sent a questioning look towards Gray and Natsu who were nodding their heads frantically. Raising a singular eyebrow Lucy just shrugged her shoulders and made forays into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

Gray let out a big sigh, either Lucy bought their little lie and just dropped it, or she was onto them like a bloodhound to a crime scene, Gray had a feeling it was of the latter.

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When Gray had told Lucy to dress up nice, the last thing she expected was that he was taking her out for dinner to a fancy restaurant. When Lucy entered through the double doors it took her a while to take in the surroundings, chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the restaurant was decorated with grand colours with gold and silver trimmings, suddenly feeling underdressed Lucy walked with Gray as a waiter guided them to their table. When the waiter left to get drinks Lucy looked at the menu and doubled over, the prices were outrageous, how on earth were they going to pay for this?

"Don't worry about the cost I have it covered" Gray mentioned as he skimmed over the menu. Lucy just looked up still in shock over the high prices, however when she looked at Gray he just gave her one of his reassuring smirks and she felt her cheeks warm up.

"H-how can you afford all of this?" she asked in a whisper, turning her head every now and then to check to see if any of the waiters could hear her.

Gray just let out a chuckle "Well I've been taking on a load of missions on my own and I've been saving up, took ages but I've been planning this for a while."

Lucy could feel the heat rise to her cheeks as her heart swelled up with warmth, so he had planned this all along. Now that she thought about it Gray had been going off on his own to do missions and now she knew why, Lucy couldn't help but grin from ear to ear, sure she may look like an idiot, but right now she couldn't care less.

"Ok I give, what's the occasion?" Lucy giggled light heartedly. Gray looked up and for a brief second his face turning a bright crimson, Lucy just laughed at Gray's newly found awkward state "Well there has to be something right? Not every day you take me to a restaurant and look you're even wearing clothes for me" Lucy said while winking at him playfully.

Gray just froze in his seat '_crap she catching on, what am I to do? What can I do? Is it me or is it getting hot in here?_' he thought. Gray began to awkwardly shuffle in his seat, the clothes irritating his skin as he felt the heat rise up, despite lowering his gaze he could still feel Lucy's expectant eyes on him. The poor ice mage grew even more uncomfortable as his clothes began to rub on him, stifling him of all forms of freedom. The ice mage unconsciously felt his trouser pocket, the small weight now becoming unbearable 'shit_ I have to think of something what can I do? Lucy's is becoming suspicious does she know that-_'

"Excuse me sir but can you please put your clothes back on."

Gray looked up to see a waiter leering down on them, he turned to see Lucy blushing in embarrassment whilst shaking her head, her hands hiding the red blush from her face. He then looked down and saw that once again he had stripped unconsciously and that his smart suit and shirt was lying on the floor.

"What! How the hell did that happen?" Gray exclaimed, Lucy only face planted the table, muttering curses about her exhibitionist of a boyfriend. Turns out that stripping in a fancy five star restaurant was not acceptable, and soon Gray and Lucy were asked to leave.

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Lucy sighed, it had been a long day and after being kicked out of the restaurant Gray took her to one of their little spots under a cherry blossom tree on hill, yes the location was a cliché but Lucy loved it all the same. It was this same hill that Gray had asked her out and therefore for that reason only the hill remained one of their favourite spots. It was their special place where they could just sit and relax; Lucy tried to fight the smile that was gracing her lips as her thoughts trailed back to the memory.

"_Gray where are you taking me?" Lucy asked blind folded. Recently Gray had been acting weird, and today was the day Lucy confronted him about it. In his response he asked her to follow him, but of course he found it practical to blind fold her in the process. Huffing slightly Lucy just let Gray guide her, all she knew was that she was walking uphill, curiosity was overwhelming her she wanted to know what was bothering Gray, recently he had been avoiding her, it hurt to say the least so that's why she asked him about his strange behaviour._

"_We're here" he muttered as he took off Lucy's blindfold, her breath hitched as she was gazing at the beautiful view before her, the sun was setting and the sky was painted in a mixture of oranges and purples, to put it simply it was breathtaking. She turned to Gray who was shifting uncomfortably from one foot to the other._

"_Lucy the reason I've been acting weird lately is because-" he stopped, closed his eyes and took in a deep breath "Well I like you, really like you. For some reason when I see you I get this feeling in the pit of my stomach, when you're hurt I want to save you, when I see guys flirting with you I want to hit them. I'm not sure if its love, I reckon it's a bit early for that but I do know I really like you and I want to spend more time with you." _

_Lucy felt something rise in her throat and her eyes began to sting, so that was why he was acting strangely, him, Gray Fullbuster had feelings for her. She didn't know why but the knowledge of that made her feel happy, she felt her chest tighten and soon hot tears started to fall. Gray's eyes widened as he ran towards her placing his hands on her shoulders "L-Lucy? I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you, I take it back!" He stuttered._

_Her fist collided with his cheek "You idiot, can't you tell when a girl is happy!" Lucy half yelled. Gray looked at her stunned as he held his sore cheek with his hand. Letting out a breath of air Lucy once again smiled and looked straight into his eyes "I'm crying because I'm happy, you idiot."_

_That was all it took for Gray to grin from ear to ear as he walked over and embraced the blonde girl, returning the hug Lucy rested her head on his bare chest... wait bare? _

"_Gray where are your clothes?"_

Lucy sighed as she snuggled closer to Gray, despite his constant stripping he was actually quite the romantic when the time was right. Closing her eyes she enjoyed this moment of bliss, the silence was comforting. It was when she felt Gray fidget that she opened her eyes and lifted her head up to look at him "Gray what's wrong?"

Averting his gaze to the ground Gray began to form little ice shapes in his hand awkwardly, sighing he stood up. Lucy cocked her head to the side in confusion '_what is he doing?_' she wondered as she watched him fumble through his trouser pockets. Her eyes suddenly widened as Gray withdrew a small black box; it couldn't be... could it?

"Lucy we have be together for two years and I can say they were the greatest two years of my life" Gray started, Lucy gasped she knew what was coming next and she wasn't sure if she was ready to hear him utter those words "We have been through so much Lucy and I know when I asked you out I wasn't sure if it was love or not, but now I know I love you," Lucy could feel the tears stinging her eyes, he was really going through with this he was actually going to ask that question, that question which would change her life forever "And I know I want to continue spending my life with you and that's why I ask, Lucy will you marry me?"

Lucy froze; honestly she didn't know what to say. Sure her and Gray had been going out for two years, but she was still unsure if she was ready to make that kind of commitment. She looked at Gray who was kneeling before her holding out the engagement ring, it really was beautiful. A small diamond was placed in the middle of the gold band with two smaller rubies placed either side, rubies, her birthstone.

She looked back up at Gray to see the determination and love in his eyes, she knew that she loved him back, heck she had told him so on several occasions but still marriage was a question not to be thought over lightly. She could make two decisions say yes and spend her life with Gray, or say no and possibly make their relationship awkward but still maintain her freedom. Lucy opened her eyes she made her choice.

Looking over to the mage she let out a hearty laugh, he did look pretty sweet kneeling there patiently waiting for her decision. She scooted over and placed both her hands on either side of his face, giving him a soft smile she brought him into a soft and loving kiss. Pulling back she laugh at his dazed expression, she turned towards the engagement ring and placed it on her ring finger, expecting it from afar it looked perfect, as if the ring was made for her and her only. She turned back to Gray who was giving her one of his famous smirks, playfully she poked his forehead.

"I can't believe I'm saying yes to a guy who proposed to me in his boxers."

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**Awh I enoyed writing this one shot so much, I hope you enjoyed reading it! Yup the fork in the road was Lucy's decision whether or not to marry Gray, but of course she'd say yes how can you say no to a guy who proposes in his boxers ;)**

I reckon I had most fun writing the opening with Natsu and Happy, I like to think that Natsu and Gray do have their moments when they don't hurl insults and one another and actually understand one another, and I felt Natsu would play the part of defending Lucy at any cost and threatening anyone who would hurt her, even Gray. Cause to be honest I see Natsu being all protective over his nakama like that :)

**Hope you enjoyed it, and please review! **


	3. Death

**Howdy all, yup this is a fast update as today I've been in a writing mood so today you get two chapters! (and who knows I might start working on another theme later)**

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Disclaimer: ... I don't own Fairy Tail, there I admitted it now let me wellow in my own self pity...

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_Theme: Death_

The pouring rain hammered down from the skies. The heavy rain that covered Magnolia seemed endless, it was almost as if the heavens were crying, crying for the loss of a remarkable person, the knight Erza Scarlet. Members of Fairy Tail slowly gathered round the stone statue of the knight and horse, an uncomfortable silence filled the air, the only noise that could be heard was the heavy rain that landed on the pavement and seeped into their clothes. All of them stood still with their heads bowed and eyes glancing to the wet pavement, none of them could believe it, Erza Scarlet had sacrificed herself to stop Aetherion but at the expense of her own life. The loss of one of their strongest and bravest guild members had caused a huge impact, amongst the large group Gray and Lucy stood side by side, they had been there when the incident had happened; immense guilt weighed on their shoulders as they felt useless, pathetic. They couldn't save her, they couldn't stop her from sacrificing herself; they just stood there waiting, praying that everyone would come out all right. How wrong they were.

As Makarov stepped forward he looked up at the grave, though he appeared strong in his eyes showed the true sorrow that hung in his heart, losing Erza was like losing part of his family, she was a member of this guild and loved amongst by all, and now he had lost her. "She, Erza Scarlet was loved by God and she loved God, and she loved all of us, her dear friends" and with that Makarov started to pay his respects towards the fallen Titania.

However powerful his words may be Lucy couldn't help but choke up at the mention of God '_God? How can there be a God if he let such a terrible thing happen to our friend_' she thought, her eyes now stung as fresh tears fell. She was thankful the rain could disguise them, she had no right to cry, she was unable to save Erza proving once again she was weak, something she didn't want to be; she wanted to be strong like Erza. She then felt something grip her hand; she turned her head to see Gray looking straight ahead, his face was blank apart from a soft frown that sketched his lips. He looked so strong just standing there motionless. However, Lucy was not fooled as she could see the tears that silently slid down his cheeks. Knowingly Lucy tightened her grip around Gray's hand, there he was trying to be strong before Erza but deep down he just wanted to break down, Lucy understood that he must have been feeling the same guilt as her, she laced her fingers with his, offering her support, for that was all she could do.

After Makarov announced Erza becoming one of the 10 holy mages he just stood there and cried, she was like his daughter, he saved her and brought her into his family and ever so soon she was taken away from him, fate was only too cruel. He knew that he had to be strong for his guild but right now he wanted to do the selfish thing and cry.

"Stop fucking around! What do you think you're all doing?"

Makarov just stood there, his tears disappearing as he maintained a solemn expression, he knew this would happen, but right now he just didn't want to handle the situation. Lucy looked up and sniffed as she watched Natsu charge through the crowd, towards the grave and the bouquet of roses that lay beside it. Her eyes widened as she watched him kick the roses violently, new tears stung her eyes as she watched the pink hair mage violently attack the grave. She felt Gray's hand tighten around hers as she could see him gritting his teeth "Natsu, please stop" she whispered to herself, praying that by some chance her message could be heard.

"Erza isn't dead!" Natsu screamed, that was enough for Gray as he took a step forward, letting go of Lucy's hand while baring his teeth at Natsu as his rage built up. Lucy just watched the scene before her, she could feel the lump rising in her throat, she couldn't stand it anymore; his harsh words just hurt her, how could he not face reality like the rest of them, why was he so determined that there was hope when there clearly wasn't.

"Please, Natsu just stop" she whispered again her tone slowly rising as she placed her head in her hands, she didn't want to see her nakama hurt himself even more. Her head was buzzing with whirling emotions as Natsu continued to thrash around claiming that Erza could not be dead, the lump in her throat just got bigger as her tears soon became sobs "You need to take a look at reality!" she cried out with all her remaining strength as she finally let the tears freely fall.

"Let go of me!" Natsu screamed as the council grabbed him from behind and pinned him to the hard concrete. The loud thud just echoed in Lucy's ears as her sobs became uncontrollable, she hugged herself as she collapsed to her knees, yes she was being selfish and didn't deserve to mourn the death of her friend, but right now everything was just too much for her to cope with.

Gray just stood there silently, he had tried his best to remain strong for everyone, but even he couldn't fulfil that. Apart from sorrow Gray was angry, not only at Natsu who had disrespected Erza's funeral but at himself, he couldn't save her from that Jellal. He felt worthless, pathetic. How could he look at himself ever again if he couldn't even save his precious friend? He lowered his gaze and saw Lucy on the floor crying, seeing her cry brought a sharp pain to his heart. He placed his hand on her shoulder affectionately; as she looked up he could see her brown eyes were now red and raw from the constant tears. Offering his hand he then lifted her back to her feet and then widened his arms wrapping her up in a protective and tight embrace.

He could feel Lucy cry into his shoulder her tears soaking his already drenched suit, but right now he didn't care. As he hugged the fragile girl he could feel his own tears starting to form and soon enough he too was crying. Gray hated himself for failing to save Erza, from now on he was going to make sure he would never make that same mistake again, he promised to himself that he would protect Lucy with his life.

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**Yup this was a depressing oneshot, just writing it made me depressed :(**

**If you havn't guessed already this one sot was inspired by chapter 100 when Erza looks and sees what happens if she actually died. It was such a moving chapter, and it has one of my favourite Graylu moments in it - the hug. So for this prompt I wanted to focus on the hug and give the Erza funeral scene a little Graylu twist. Sorry about the shortness of this chapter I promise you that there will be longer chapters in the future!**

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter despite the depressing-ness of it all, and remember to review :D**


	4. Change in the Weather

**I am so sorry for the late update, I've had mock exams and I've just been so busy that I haven't had time to update.  
****So to say sorry here's a lengthy oneshot, I hope you enjoy it! I know I had fun writing this one :)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail... yet :P

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_Theme: Change in the Weather_

There were many mysteries in the world, one of them being Juvia. As Lucy sat by the bar in the guild she couldn't help but stare at the blue haired mage. It wasn't that she didn't trust her; she just wasn't sure what to make of her yet. She had worked alongside Juvia before when they went to rescue Erza, and back then they had developed a strong friendship, however, despite that bond Lucy still couldn't forget before when Juvia had worked for Phantom Lord. The dark memory of being attacked in the ally way and almost drowning still sent shivers down her spine. It was that very memory that made her wary of the water mage, as it reminded her just how powerful she was compared to her.

"Gray-sama!"

Lucy looked towards the door to see that Gray was walking towards the bar; she couldn't help but laugh when she saw Juvia latch herself onto the ice mage. If there was anything Lucy admired about Juvia other than her strength, it was her fierce determination. Ears perking up Juvia shot Lucy a cold glare.

"Gray-sama belongs to Juvia, Lucy will not win Gray-sama" the girl remarked. Her frown then broke into an infatuated grin as she gripped Gray's arm tighter giggling giddily. That was another thing that made Juvia a mystery to Lucy, the unnecessary belief that Lucy was in love with Gray. When Lucy watched the odd couple Lucy still couldn't comprehend what was going through Juvia's head. Juvia was both powerful and extremely attractive, so surely Gray would choose the water mage over herself.

For some reason that single thought made her stomach drop, she looked back up at Gray who was now insulting Natsu and for some unexplained reason a smile crept to her lips. Noticing immediately her eyes widened as she turned to her drink and began downing the warm liquid. Slamming the glass onto the counter she took a minute to recollect her previous thoughts. Where did those unexpected feelings suddenly come from? Was it possible she had the slightest crush on the exhibitionist? No impossible their relationship was purely platonic; she was just too busy caught up in her thoughts of why Juvia was insistent on a possible infatuation between herself and the ice mage.

After managing to convince herself of the latter, Lucy got up from her stool and began to head out of the guild. However, before she got to the door Natsu, Happy and Gray intervened, all of them seemed to be donning a rather excited expression.

"Lucy, we found a mission involving kicking a bunch of guys' asses the reward's good too! What do you say, want to tag along?" Natsu blurted out, unable to contain his excitement.

Lucy looked over to Gray who just stared at her intently. Once again that small feeling in the pit of her stomach arose and soon she felt her eyes drift towards the floor.

"Uh, yeah sure why not. Let me just get a few things from home and then we'll head off," with that said Lucy turned and left the guild.

When Lucy left Gray found himself staring out after her. The last minute replayed over and over his head, something wasn't right with Lucy. I mean what else would explain her somewhat flustered behaviour just now? Drifting towards one of the many tables in the guild, he decided to sit down opposite Erza who was calmly eating some strawberry white chocolate cake.

"Something troubling you Gray?"

Snapping out of his thoughts Gray just shook his head. "Nah nothing out of the ordinary Natsu's still an idiot."

"Sure there isn't anything else?" questioned Erza. Gray looked up to see her expectant stare, she knew something was up, she always knew. Sighing to himself he thought he might as well tell her, since if he was going to tell anyone Erza would most likely be the best option. Cana would probably laugh at him; Mirajane would most likely get too lost in her own romantic fantasies and Natsu was an idiot.

"Well Lucy has been acting a little odd I guess" Gray mumbled slightly. Nodding to herself and taking another bite out of her cake Gray took this as a sign to carry on. "Well it's nothing out of the ordinary she just refused to look at me."

Finishing her cake Erza dabbed the corners of her mouth with a handkerchief whilst nodding all knowingly. "Sometimes girls get flustered over guys they find attractive and find it difficult to look at them" Erza replied. She then paused and closed her eyes smiling to herself slightly; Gray began to feel a shiver run down his spine as he became wary of the thought that crossed the Titania's mind.

"You should ask her out."

Gray nearly fell off the bench in shock. When he looked back at Erza he noticed the serious glint in her eyes, wait so she actually meant what she said? A furious blush crossed his cheeks as he began spluttering nonsense.

"That's stupid why would I do that?" Gray shouted, and by doing so he attracted a few looks including one of a particular water mage.

"Why wouldn't you?" Erza calmly stated, and with that Gray suddenly shivered as he realised the deadly tone hidden in her eyes. An awkward silence fell between the two, composing himself Gray just scowled slightly.

"Ugh I'm off, I have a mission to get ready for" and with that Gray marched out of the guild leaving a satisfied Erza and a curious Juvia.

* * *

Clipping her keys to her belt Lucy was now ready for that mission. As she opened her door she stopped. Her thoughts slowly drifted back to the feeling in her stomach, the feelings reminded her of the feeling she had when she thought Natsu was in love with her. Shaking her head to herself she closed her door and headed out to the docks where she would meet Gray and Natsu for the mission.

"Hey Luce!"

Lucy sighed '_speak_ _of the devil_' she thought as she looked up to see the half naked mage approaching her. What she wasn't aware of was the third party member lurking behind various crates beside an unknown alley way.

"Hey Lucy I want to ask you something" Gray stopped and noticed the faint hue of pink crossing Lucy's cheeks; he couldn't help but find it kind of cute. "Why were you acting weird earlier on?"

"Weird? I wasn't acting weird and for god's sake Gray where are your clothes?"

Gray continued to watch Lucy's face get redder she appeared more and more flustered, '_maybe Erza was right after all?_' Gray couldn't help but chuckle to himself '_heh, how cute she has a crush on me_' he thought, sure enough that simple acknowledgement gave himself an ego boost, it was then he remembered what Erza told him '_should I?_' he asked himself, he then smirked maybe he should, after all Lucy was attractive and if she did have a crush on him he should give her a chance.

"Hey Luce after this mission want to hang out?"

Lucy froze in her spot; she didn't notice the drop in temperature or the darkening clouds above, all she could hear where Gray's words echoing in her head.

"L-like a date?" she stuttered.

Gray shrugged "Sure why not."

All Lucy could do was nod dumbly. It was when she could feel the first few drops of rain that she noticed the dramatic change in the weather. Gray looked up at the sky shielding his eyes from the heavy rain. "How odd" he muttered to himself.

Lucy turned her head a fraction only to see a hidden figure running towards an alley, curiosity overwhelming her she felt her body slowly moving towards the direction of the alley way.

"Oi Lucy we should get to the docks before the rain gets too bad" Gray shouted trying to get her attention.

Eyes still fixated on the mysterious person she just yelled "Go ahead I'll catch up later." Not wanting to argue Gray just nodded and started running towards the docks.

With a spark of determination Lucy built herself the courage and began running towards the alley, ignoring the voice in her head to turn back Lucy continued to plough through the rain. As she reached the alley way she no longer cared about the uncomfortable feeling of her clothes sticking to her skin, or her hair being plastered to her face. Tentatively she peered her head, trying to see past the thick rain.

"H-Hello?" she stuttered as the cold rain caused her to rub her arms in a vain attempt to radiate some warmth.

Feeling braver Lucy felt her feet move forward it wasn't until she was near the end of the alley way that she could hear the sounds of quiet sobbing. Instinctively she walked closer to the sound, when she found the owner of the sobs Lucy couldn't help but feel her heart ache in pity. There sat down in the rain was the mage that Lucy had both feared and admired, Juvia.

"J-Juvia?"

Juvia's eyes shot up, when she saw Lucy kneeling down beside her, she felt a sudden build up of anger erupt. Her eyes hardening she began to manipulate the water around her.

"Love rival" she whispered harshly as she slowly stood up, gathering the downpour of rain into mounds of water that surrounded Lucy.

"Juvia wait-"

"Water Lock!" Juvia shouted. Suddenly the water enveloped around Lucy trapping her in a giant ball of water, Juvia only glared harshly when she saw Lucy struggle against her magic. She was hurt so she should hurt Lucy; it made perfect sense in her mind. However, when she saw the desperate and pleading looking in the girl's eyes something in her head told her to stop. Releasing her magic the Water Lock burst, collapsing to the ground Lucy struggled to get back to her knees as she gasped for breath.

Having done what she wanted to do Juvia began to step past the crumpled girl, when she felt the surprisingly tight grip around her ankle she then looked back to the ground to see Lucy looking at her directly in the eyes.

"Please Juvia, talk to me" the blond hair mage whispered feebly.

Sighing steadily Juvia sat down beside Lucy. The sound of the heavy rain filled the air; in the end it was Lucy who broke the silence.

"I'm sorry Juvia" the blond turned her head to face the girl sitting beside her, her brown eyes filled to the brim with guilt "I'm really sorry."

The only response Lucy received was silence. The sharp pain in Lucy's chest only continued to grow, she didn't enjoy seeing Juvia like this; it broke her heart to see the usually determined girl look broken.

"You know" Lucy smiled as if remembering some fond memory "although I was afraid of you I really admired and respected you, almost like how I admire and respect Erza."

Juvia turned her head her eyes slightly widened at the blonds' confession "Lucy admires Juvia?" the water mage whispered.

Lucy just grinned happily "You bet! I just admired how you never gave up and how you were always so determined, as soon as you joined the guild you were recognised by so many as you were so powerful. Me? Well I'm still trying to work my way up, sure I have my friends but when it comes to magical power I'm still pretty average."

"Juvia doesn't think Lucy is average." Turning her head Lucy raised her eyebrows in confusion, "When Erza was kidnapped Lucy was able to defeat one of the Trinity raven on her own, something Juvia failed to do. So Lucy's magic power is not average, at least Juvia doesn't think so" sighing Juvia clasped her hands together as she looked towards the floor "Maybe that's why Gray-sama chose love rival over Juvia" she whispered to herself.

Immediately Lucy grabbed hold of Juvia's hand and gripped it tightly "don't think like that, don't ever think like that!" Lucy stated, a fierce determination laced within her words. "The Juvia I know would just continue to chase after the man she loves and would never give up!" Lucy sighed and then smiled softly "After all, if you love something you would fight for it... right?"

Inspired by the celestial spirit mage's words Juvia found the spark of determination rekindle, she soon found herself grinning as she realised Lucy was right, she knew that Gray was the one for her, so she shouldn't let her love rival get in the way of that.

"Juvia is not going to give up; Juvia will win Gray-sama's love so you better watch out Lucy!"

Lucy let out a hearty laugh as she witnessed Juvia's sudden change in enthusiasm "I wouldn't have it any other way!"

As the two girls sat there smiling at each other neither of them seemed to notice the sun peeking out from the dark clouds. The rain had stopped.

* * *

**Okay so I admit this one wasn't very Gray/Lucy but more Lucy/Juvia friendship... But hey It was guaranteed that Juvia would pop up in this challenge since she's a contender for Gray's love.**

**I hope you enjoyed this oneshot, thank you so much all of those who have reviewed and read this story I'll try my best to update sooner for all of those who are reading this :)**


	5. Authors Note

Hello everyone!

Just letting you know that I haven't forgotten about you guys or this fic! However I do have some questions I wish to address.

I have been working hard on the next prompt but I'm afraid to say it is rather dark. I've been trying to tone it down for the sake of the T rating but I'm paranoid if I tone it down too much it'll turn tacky.

Now I have some suggestions and I want to know your guys thoughts and opinions.

Option 1. Don't bother toning down the content but raise the rating of the story to M.

Option 2. Tone down the content and publish it, maintaining the T rating.

Option 3. Tone down the content and publish it, maintaining the T rating. However, then publish an M rated version separate from the collection.

If you guys have any ideas then that would be appreciated. I understand that a variety of people read these stories and I don't want to make any of my readers uncomfortable.

Regards,

-Tears.x


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